This invention relates to a roll-on ball applicator and specifically the use for the application of lotion or oil for the protection of exposed body surfaces from harmful sun rays. A specific embodiment includes an extended container body shape to allow reaching the ball applicator to the most inaccessible portions of the skin, such as the small of the back between the shoulders.
Anyone who has spent time on a sandy beach in the summer time is aware of the difficulties in protecting the skin from harmful sun's rays. Oils, lotions, solutions, home made liquid preparations and commercial preparations are widely used to protect the exposed portions of the body from the harmful sun rays. Sun blocks which absorb the ultraviolet rays are commonly used for added protection of the body. Throughout the specification and claims, the word "lotion" is intended to include all such preparations including all the physical forms and chemical compositions used to protect the skin from the elements.
A continuing and bothersome problem encountered in applying lotion to the body is the necessity of using your hands to apply the lotion and the difficulty of applying it evenly over the entire body. Bottles holding the lotion typically come in contact with the sand and even if you have just come out of the water, picking up the bottle immediately transfers sand to the hand surface which will be used to apply the lotion. There is a need to have an applicator which can be used to apply the lotion to all exposed portions of the body while freeing up at least one hand that never need touch the container. If the lotion is attempted to be applied by the hands, it is essentially impossible to apply the lotion to the entire body with only one hand. This involves touching the present style lotion containers with both hands ending up applying sand together with the lotion over the body. Finally, it is impossible for most persons to reach significant portions of their body and while most persons can not reach the small of their back, many older persons or persons with limited movement do to an infirmity or an accident can reach only limited areas.
Ball type dispensers are described and illustrated in the following patents but none teach or suggest the use as an applicator for sun protection lotion and none provide a solution for the needs described above nor satisfy the objects of the invention listed herein below. The patents describing various dispensers using rolling ball devices include: U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 2,749,566 to R. H. Thomas, U.S. Pat. No. 2,9796,561 to R. M. Culver, U.S. Pat. No. 4,326,508 to R. Stauffer, U.S. Pat. No. 2,883,690 to E. J. Holler, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 3,048,881 to E. M. Ackerman, U.S. Pat. No. 2,981,968 to W. A. Schaich, U.S. Pat. No. 2997,731 to R. S. Schultz, U.S. Pat. No. 4,168,128 to W. E. Fillmore and G. V. Mumford, U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,125 to W. G. Berghahn and J. Weinstein, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 264,179 to H. Dash, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 248,214 to D. P. DiNuccio, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 220,249 to J. Gould, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 250,248 to J. A. Grip, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 183,760 to R. Meadows, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 180,715 to R. Henry and H. Poris, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 218,731 to K. Eisermann, U.S. Pat. No. Des. 256,666 to E. Sarda, and U.S. Pat. No. Des. 263,118 to R. Weekman.